Is Philadelphia Västerbottenost ultra-processed?
Yes, it's ultra-processed
- 1 Unprocessed
- 2 Kitchen staple
- 3 Processed
- 4 Ultra-processed
Signs of ultra-processing in its ingredients:
- 23 ingredients
- 5 additives
- Nutri-Score D
Ingredients
Ultra-processing Processing
® flade, flote, vassle (ultra-processing marker), valle, myseprodukt (mjolk), vatten, vand, västerbottensost® (processing marker) 5%, salt (processing marker), modifierad stärkelse (ultra-processing marker), stivelse, stabiliseringsmedel, e412 (ultra-processing marker), potatisstärkelse (processing marker), kartoffelstivelse, citronsyra, konserveringsmedel (processing marker), onserveringsmidler (e202 (processing marker), e251 (processing marker)), bakteriekultur, ostlöpe
Additives: E14XX Modified Starch , E202 Potassium sorbate , E251 Sodium nitrate , E330 Citric acid , E412 Guar gum
As written on the pack
® FLADE/FLOTE, vassle-/valle-/myseprodukt(MJOLK), vatten/vand, VÄSTERBOTTENSOST® (5%), salt, modifierad stärkelse/stivelse, stabiliseringsmedel/stabilisator (E412), potatisstärkelse/ kartoffelstivelse, syra (citronsyra), konserveringsmedel/ onserveringsmidler (E202, E251), bakteriekultur, ostlöpe.
What makes it ultra-processed
Cosmetic additives
Added to change how the food looks, feels or tastes, not to keep it safe. A hallmark of ultra-processed food.
- E14xx Modified Starch Modified starches (E1400 to E1452) are starches treated physically, with enzymes or chemically so that they thicken and hold up to heating, freezing or acidity better than ordinary starch.
- E412 Guar gum Guar gum is a thickener ground from the seeds of the guar plant.
- Modified starch Modified starch is starch altered physically, with enzymes or chemically, so that it thickens, gels or survives freezing and heating better than ordinary starch.
Substances rarely used in home kitchens
Refined or extracted in factories, such as syrups made from starch or isolated proteins. The other hallmark of ultra-processed food.
- Whey Whey is the liquid left over from cheese making, usually dried into a powder and used as a cheap source of milk solids, protein and lactose.
6 ingredients that would only make it processed
Kitchen staples like sugar, salt and oil. On their own they make a food processed, not ultra-processed.
- E202 Potassium sorbate Preservatives are substances which prolong the shelf-life of foods by protecting them against deterioration caused by micro-organisms and/or which protect against growth of pathogenic micro-organisms.
- E251 Sodium nitrate Preservatives are substances which prolong the shelf-life of foods by protecting them against deterioration caused by micro-organisms and/or which protect against growth of pathogenic micro-organisms.
- Preservative Preservatives slow spoilage by microbes.
- Salt Salt, added for taste and preservation.
- Starch Starch extracted from cereals or potatoes, used to thicken.
- Cheese Cheese is milk preserved with salt, cultures and rennet.
About this information
- Data from this product on Open Food Facts (barcode 7622202371455, last edited 22 September 2026), available under the Open Database License. If something is wrong or the recipe has changed, you can correct it there.
- Photo: Open Food Facts contributors, CC BY-SA 3.0.
- The NOVA group is an automated estimate from crowdsourced data: a missing or mistyped ingredient can change it.
- NOVA measures processing, not nutrition. For nutrition, Open Food Facts gives this product a Nutri-Score of D (from A, best, to E).
- General information, not medical or dietary advice. Check the pack if you have an allergy.